De Bres calls for language tolerance

Employer opposition to staff speaking languages other than English reflects ignorance that needs tackling, says the Race Relations Commissioner.

Releasing a report yesterday to mark Race Relations Day on Monday, Joris de Bres called on the Government to revisit the idea of a national languages policy first mooted in the early 1990s.

The commissioner said embracing multilingualism was part of a broader challenge to support a sense of belonging for all people and to have an inclusive national identity.

It was important for retaining Maori and Pacific languages and to encourage greater respect for other cultures.

Trade was another incentive.

New Zealand was signing free trade deals with both China and Thailand, but Asia 2000 had expressed concerns that language barriers would prevent New Zealand businesses making the most of those opportunities, he said.

The use of languages other than English in workplaces saw 17 complaints filed with the Human Rights Commission last year and included employees being disciplined for saying "kia ora".

Another example was the South Auckland medical supplier which banned workers from speaking anything other than English. Its director complained Indian language-speakers sounded like they were talking " gobbledegook" which he said others found "trying".

In a Wellington rest home a Samoan-language occupational safety and health poster was removed by a manager.

Mr de Bres said the country's geographical isolation and the Anglo-Saxon heritage of many citizens meant New Zealand did "lag behind most other people" when it came to appreciating the value of learning second or third languages.

It was time to review the issue to see whether a single and more co-ordinated national languages policy was needed, Mr de Bres said.

Ensuring all children learned te reo Maori in school should be a cornerstone of any new policy.

"It's achievable without anyone getting their nose out of joint - children learning more than one language is common practice almost anywhere else in the world."